Unlike other airlines Virgin Express does not sell only return tickets or one way tickets at the price of a return fare. Sunday rules making weekday travel very expensive for business travellers are also non-existent and instead of having 20 or more different fare types -which only adds to the confusion amongst the consumers- Virgin Express has a simple and understandable fare structure.
Virgin Express is now taking its transparent fare structure one step further. As from 1st September 2002 passengers will be able to change any ticket they purchase with Virgin Express and the low fare airline will only offer two types of fares:
* Virgin Value. The lowest fare available. Although this is the lowest fare, a passenger is now able to change the date of travel, destination or even the name in the reservation for only EUR25 per change plus any difference in the available fare on the flight concerned. All changes must be made at a minimum of 24 hours before departure time.
* Virgin Corporate. The name says it all. Constructed primarily for corporate travellers, a fully flexible fare gives complete freedom to change the travel date, flight timing or name at no extra charge. One can also cancel this ticket free of charge. All changes must be made a minimum of one hour before the scheduled departure time.
Paul Sies, Commercial Director of Virgin Express, commented: Virgin Express always wishes to take a clear and honest approach to the consumers, and is therefore proud to be the first carrier to offer full flexibility with regard to all of its fares. This development not only makes our internal procedures less complicated, but the simplified fare rules will also lead to a better perception of our overall service approach and higher customer satisfaction. We are convinced that as a result of our changed pricing structure more people will become conscious of the complex fare rules of other airlines and of the ridiculously high fares some of these carriers charge.
Virgin Express introduced ticketless travel on mainland Europe in 1996. At present the Belgian carrier offers flights from Brussels to 14 major European destinations: Athens, Barcelona, Copenhagen, Faro, Geneva, Gothenburg, Lisbon, London-Heathrow, Madrid, Malaga, Milan, Nice, Rome and Stockholm.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
